Brian Hartman
2010-01-20 03:09:53 UTC
Hi Ernie,
Below is my Field Report for the Teva Riva shoes. The link to my HTML report is:
http://www.backpackgeartest.org/reviews/test/TESTS/FR%20-%20Teva%20Riva%20hiking%20shoes%20-%20Brian%20Hartman/
http://snurl.com/u4qpu
Thanks,
Brian
FIELD REPORT
FIELD LOCATIONS AND CONDITIONS
I wore the Teva Riva shoes for a total of 11 days and 39 mi (63 km) during the field testing period. This does not include days I wore the shoes around town.
Hoosier National Forest, Indiana: This was a three day backpacking trip of approximately 12 miles (24 km). The weather was warm and sunny with highs in the upper 60's F (20 C) and lows in the mid 40's F (7 C). The terrain was heavily forested and quite rugged. I spent the majority of this backpacking trip off-trail.
North Chagrin Park, Ohio: While visiting family in Cleveland, Ohio I went on two day hikes. The first was a 3 mi (5 km) hike while the second was a 6 mi (9 km) geocaching adventure. The park elevation is 669 ft (204 m). The temperature both days was in the upper 20's F (-2 C).
St Cloud, Florida: Daytime temperatures during this four day backpacking trip ranged from 60 F (15 C) to 82 F (28 C), with nighttime temperatures around 50 F (10 C). The first day was rainy and windy, but after that weather got better. During the following three days skies were clear and sunny. The trails were well maintained with minimal elevation changes. We hiked 10 mi (16 km) over the course of the trip.
Oldenburg, Indiana: This was a two-day backpacking trip that covered 7.5 mi (12 km). I hiked 4 mi (6.4 km) on the first day and 3.5 mi (5.6 km) on the second day. The weather during this trip was partly sunny with temperatures in the mid 60's (18 C).
PERFORMANCE IN THE FIELD
I enjoyed wearing the Teva Riva shoes during the past two months of testing. Although their width remained tight as noted in my initial report, I did not experience any other discomfort. My heels did not slip while walking and the toe box had sufficient space. In addition, the insoles were comfortable while backpacking on hard ground and I received no irritation from the tongue of the shoes. The break-in period for these shoes was fairly short, on the order of a few days. On the down side, I was only able to wear the Teva Rivas with thin socks because of their snug fit. The thin socks limited the comfort range of the shoes in cold weather as noted below. Also my arch support orthotics could not be used in these shoes due to their snug fit. In an attempt to better understand whether these shoes ran small and whether a larger size would help, I searched my local shoe stores for the Teva Rivas but was unable to find them.
<<IMAGE 1>> During my trip to the Hoosier National Forest I carried a pack weighing approximately 18 lb (8 kg). I spent most of this trip scrambling up and down steep terrain, over logs, and thru thick brush. The rubber toe rands did a great job of protecting the front of my shoes while sustaining only minor scratches. The Vibram outsoles provided good traction without collecting too much debris in the treads. Most importantly, the Teva Rivas provided good stability while hiking off-trail due to their leather construction and nylon shank. As an added bonus, these shoes were considerably lighter than my mid hikers.
While day hiking at North Chagrin Park in 28 F (12 C) temperatures, my feet were noticeably cold. I tried speeding up my pace in an effort to warm up but was unsuccessful. My socks were simply too thin and the fact that the shoes were uninsulated and tight on my feet certainly didn't help. My feet were much more comfortable while hiking in Florida in temperatures of 82 F (28 C). The Teva Rivas breathed extremely well and my feet did not perspire despite strenuous backpacking throughout the week. My first day of backpacking in Florida saw wet weather. These shoes were definitely waterproof. I wore them in steady rain and stepped in more than a few puddles and yet water never socked thru the shoes. My feet stayed dry as long as I didn't submerge the shoes. I am very impressed with how well the Event lining performed.
SUMMARY
The Teva Riva shoes are well-designed hiking shoes. They are lightweight, waterproof and they breathe extremely well. The fact that they are tight on my feet is unfortunate as they have so many good features. This concludes my Field Report. Please check back in about two months for my final test results.
Thanks to Teva and BackpackGearTest for allowing me to test the Riva Event hiking shoes.
This report was created with the BGT Report Generator.
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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Below is my Field Report for the Teva Riva shoes. The link to my HTML report is:
http://www.backpackgeartest.org/reviews/test/TESTS/FR%20-%20Teva%20Riva%20hiking%20shoes%20-%20Brian%20Hartman/
http://snurl.com/u4qpu
Thanks,
Brian
FIELD REPORT
FIELD LOCATIONS AND CONDITIONS
I wore the Teva Riva shoes for a total of 11 days and 39 mi (63 km) during the field testing period. This does not include days I wore the shoes around town.
Hoosier National Forest, Indiana: This was a three day backpacking trip of approximately 12 miles (24 km). The weather was warm and sunny with highs in the upper 60's F (20 C) and lows in the mid 40's F (7 C). The terrain was heavily forested and quite rugged. I spent the majority of this backpacking trip off-trail.
North Chagrin Park, Ohio: While visiting family in Cleveland, Ohio I went on two day hikes. The first was a 3 mi (5 km) hike while the second was a 6 mi (9 km) geocaching adventure. The park elevation is 669 ft (204 m). The temperature both days was in the upper 20's F (-2 C).
St Cloud, Florida: Daytime temperatures during this four day backpacking trip ranged from 60 F (15 C) to 82 F (28 C), with nighttime temperatures around 50 F (10 C). The first day was rainy and windy, but after that weather got better. During the following three days skies were clear and sunny. The trails were well maintained with minimal elevation changes. We hiked 10 mi (16 km) over the course of the trip.
Oldenburg, Indiana: This was a two-day backpacking trip that covered 7.5 mi (12 km). I hiked 4 mi (6.4 km) on the first day and 3.5 mi (5.6 km) on the second day. The weather during this trip was partly sunny with temperatures in the mid 60's (18 C).
PERFORMANCE IN THE FIELD
I enjoyed wearing the Teva Riva shoes during the past two months of testing. Although their width remained tight as noted in my initial report, I did not experience any other discomfort. My heels did not slip while walking and the toe box had sufficient space. In addition, the insoles were comfortable while backpacking on hard ground and I received no irritation from the tongue of the shoes. The break-in period for these shoes was fairly short, on the order of a few days. On the down side, I was only able to wear the Teva Rivas with thin socks because of their snug fit. The thin socks limited the comfort range of the shoes in cold weather as noted below. Also my arch support orthotics could not be used in these shoes due to their snug fit. In an attempt to better understand whether these shoes ran small and whether a larger size would help, I searched my local shoe stores for the Teva Rivas but was unable to find them.
<<IMAGE 1>> During my trip to the Hoosier National Forest I carried a pack weighing approximately 18 lb (8 kg). I spent most of this trip scrambling up and down steep terrain, over logs, and thru thick brush. The rubber toe rands did a great job of protecting the front of my shoes while sustaining only minor scratches. The Vibram outsoles provided good traction without collecting too much debris in the treads. Most importantly, the Teva Rivas provided good stability while hiking off-trail due to their leather construction and nylon shank. As an added bonus, these shoes were considerably lighter than my mid hikers.
While day hiking at North Chagrin Park in 28 F (12 C) temperatures, my feet were noticeably cold. I tried speeding up my pace in an effort to warm up but was unsuccessful. My socks were simply too thin and the fact that the shoes were uninsulated and tight on my feet certainly didn't help. My feet were much more comfortable while hiking in Florida in temperatures of 82 F (28 C). The Teva Rivas breathed extremely well and my feet did not perspire despite strenuous backpacking throughout the week. My first day of backpacking in Florida saw wet weather. These shoes were definitely waterproof. I wore them in steady rain and stepped in more than a few puddles and yet water never socked thru the shoes. My feet stayed dry as long as I didn't submerge the shoes. I am very impressed with how well the Event lining performed.
SUMMARY
The Teva Riva shoes are well-designed hiking shoes. They are lightweight, waterproof and they breathe extremely well. The fact that they are tight on my feet is unfortunate as they have so many good features. This concludes my Field Report. Please check back in about two months for my final test results.
Thanks to Teva and BackpackGearTest for allowing me to test the Riva Event hiking shoes.
This report was created with the BGT Report Generator.
Copyright 2010. All rights reserved.
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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